From the Associated Press, via NBCSports.com, comes word that free agent outfielder Andruw Jones has finalized a one-year, $3.5 million contract with the Rakuten Eagles of Japan’s Pacific League. The deal was agreed to over a week ago but is just now being officially announced by the Japanese team.

Jones batted .197/.294/.408 with 14 home runs and 34 RBI in 94 games this past season for the Yankees. He probably could have found at least one major league team willing to offer him a one-year pact, but he has better earning power over in Japan at this point.

It’s not clear whether the 35-year-old plans to return to Major League Baseball after his stint overseas.

Jones, the winner of 10 straight Gold Gloves from 1998-2007 and a five-time National League All-Star, owns a .254/.337/.486 career batting line.

If he had retired after 2007, the line would be .263/.342/.497 with 368 HRs, those 10 GGs, 5 times an All-Star and 60.9 WAR. Of course, he was only 30. Since then, of course, it’s been spectacularly ugly: .210/.316/.424, 66 HRs, and -0.6 WAR.

Best of luck to him. He once looked like a sure thing for the HoF, and I think he would have gotten a lot of support if something like an injury did end his career in 2007. No chance now though.

Japan doesn’t get the chance too often to sign players who have accumulated numbers like Jones. Not quite HOF, but probably the most accomplished player in that country now. Apparently, they feel his resume will make an impact on the fans there. $3.5 million is a huge sum compared to what he could make here. I’m glad he got a chance to continue playing and to get paid. Too bad whatever numbers he does put up don’t get added to his MLB totals.

When this guy came up as a 19 year-old he was smacking the ball around, meanwhile teammates like Maddow and Smoltz were saying the was the best CF they’d ever played with. OK, so maybe not a Willie Mays, but he surely was going to be an All-Star impact player for years to come.

And he was an “All-Star impact player for years to come.” From 1998-2006 he was worth at least 5.4 fWAR. Andruw Jones is one of these greats. His rapid decline at the age of 31 skews people’s assessment. His career easily exceeds many CFs who are in the Hall of Fame (especially those of recent inductees Kirby Puckett and Andre Dawson) and is strikingly comparable to Duke Snider’s.